Caged Souls
by Chaotic lil Azn gurl
Summary: My name is Higurashi Kagome and this is my story. I was one of the few lucky 1000 BetaTesters for Sword Art Online. I was also one of the people who brought the game. To be back was exhilarating; to escape from the real world. But we, the 10,000 people, were trapped by the creator and the only way to beat the game was to defeat the final boss on the 100th floor. KagKiri? R/R!
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Caged Souls

**Chapter Title: **And It All Comes Crashing Down

**Genre: **General, Romance, Humor, Action, Adventure

**Rating: **K

**General Summary: **I was one of the few lucky 1000 beta-testers for Sword Art Online. I was also one of the people who ordered the game once it was out. To be back was exhilarating; to escape from the real world but we, the 10,000 people, were trapped and the only way to beat the game was to defeat the final boss on the 100th floor. Kag's POV

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Sword Art Online or Inuyasha. All characters belong to their creative owners.

**Author's Note:** I was re-watching SAO and I thought… why not? So ta-da! Also, I don't know if I should have the pairings to be Kag/Kirito or not. Vote? Also I'm trying out this first person POV.

* * *

I was one of the few lucky 1,000 beta-testers for the one month period from August to September 2022. During that period, Sword Art Online was lauded as an incredible experience and it received extremely positive reviews despite the actual difficulty of the game, even if the highest floor myself and a few other Beta Testers reached was only the eighth.

After the CBT, Closed Beta Tested, ended, we were given the opportunity to pre-order the game.

I was also one of the 10,000 people who brought it within seconds from online, which I got as an early birthday gift since oni-chan forgot to take me to the *Ocean Dome due to his job, but anyways I'm rambling.

Sword Art Online officially started server service on one in the afternoon of November 6, 2022. We CBT had the option of creating a new character or using the ones we used for testing, I obviously chose my CBT character.

It was exhilarating to be back again. The artificial fresh air, wind, and nature music was a change from the horns, pollution, and wind filled with cigarettes or car smoke.

And then it happened.

I was out in the fields, taking a break from relearning the skills, while watching a tall figure dressed in dark clothes helping another player in red how to attack.

When all of the sudden, I was forced teleported to the starting city, Town of Beginnings, where Kayaba gave us a gift to reveal our true features and to also reveal that the lack of a log out function, which we players had realized, was a 'feature' of his new game and that forced removal of the Nerve Gear head piece from the other side would fry our brains. He continued explaining that the only way to escape or to go back to the other side was to clear the game; that is, to successfully defeat all 100 levels of Aincrad, the first Realized World, and defeat the final boss.

When he disappeared, I quickly realized that the fields would be over crowded with players soon and quickly mapped out the route I would have to take to go to the next town with the safest path. I turned only to see the familiar dark-clothed player grab the red-head and run off. He, too, must have realized that the fields would be overflowing.

So on November 6, 2022, at five-thirty pm our lives changed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Caged Souls

**Chapter Title:** Dungeon Mapping

**Genre:** General, Romance, Humor, Action, Adventure

**Rating:** K

**General Summary**: I was one of the few lucky 1000 beta-testers for Sword Art Online. I was also one of the people who ordered the game once it was out. To be back was exhilarating; to escape from the real world but we, the 10,000 people, were trapped and the only way to beat the game was to defeat the final boss on the 100th floor. Kag's POV

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sword Art Online or Inuyasha. All characters belong to their creative owners.

**Author's Note:** I was re-watching SAO and I thought… why not? So ta-da! Also, I don't know if I should have the pairings to be Kag/Kirito or not. Vote? Also I'm trying out this first person POV.

* * *

One month into the game, 2000 people have died and the first floor had yet to be cleared.

I've decided to continue on, soloing after a player tried to kill me when we partnered to complete the quest. In short, he purposely tripped a trap and he died while I tried to save him. Even though he had thought of killing me after we completed the quest, his death brought me such grief and my mortality of not being able to save him, begun to weigh heavily on me.

Currently I'm out on a mini-dungeon, called Swamp Nest, mapping it out as I go along, killing monsters for drops to sell or for equipping and for experience. Ducking from a Cute Brog; which it wasn't you know, cute at all, few levels lower than me, I jumped a few paces back and shifted my one-handed long sword to my right hand to waist-height and watched the enemy. Sliding my foot forward, I closed in on the ugly mutated frog thing, and swung my sword horizontally.

The sword, now covered in a purple-ish pink light, cut through the thinly protected chest and a bright red light scattered instead of blood. There was a gurgled growled scream.

However, my sword didn't stop. The system assisted me through the programmed movements and chained me for the next slash with a speed that would normally have been impossible in the real world.

However, I wasn't in the real world.

The sword speed off left from right and cut into the brog's stomach, I spun my body in a full circle and the third strike struck the enemy in the neck, decapitating it before it could gurgle a scream.

At the same time, the HP bar above the Cute Brog's body, its head was a few feet away as the body was fallen in front of me, disappeared without leaving even a single dot. With a sound of shattered glass, it broke down to infinite polygons and disappeared.

This was the Death of this world, it was instantaneous and short, a perfect destruction, not leaving behind a single trace.

I glanced at the virtual experience points and drop items I received, appearing in a white background box with black font in the center of my vision, and went over it to see if I needed any of the items or equipment's before I sell them back at the town. Swinging my sword right and left, out of habit and since it made me look cool, before sheathing it in the scabbard on my side. I continued walking down the path, turning left once and entered through a safe area; where monsters do not enter and attack players. They can be recognized by a special colored torch placed in the four corners on the wall.

I stretched, feeling my joints crack and pop and then released all the tension I have built up from the past hours of fighting and mapping. A black blob moved at the corner of my eye and I turned to it, tensed and surprised, only to see the familiar dark-haired boy I had seen back in Town of Beginnings.

I nodded at him and slid down with my back against the dungeon wall, closing my eyes. My temple started throbbing, perhaps from fatigue due to the countless hours of fighting and mapping. I shook my head a couple of times to get rid of the pain and massaged my temples with my thumb and pointer.

"Here." A voice said a couple of feet away from me.

Opening my eyes, I looked up to see the boy the boy handing me a piece of bread with… was that cream? Hastily, I looked up at him, thinking it was a prank. A few seconds passed, and he must have sensed me being cautious and took a small piece from the bread and simply ate it, telling me that it wasn't poisoned. His hand was still there. I hesitantly took it from him, still thinking that he would pull back and say "Ha! Fooled you!" but he didn't. When the bread left his hand, he gave me a soft smile and sat a foot or two away, giving me space.

I cautiously took a bite and instantly melted as the familiar taste of sweet vanilla cream exploded my mouth. I must have taken huge bites, instead of savoring the taste. My disappointment must have shown on my face until he split his own creamed bread in half and present it to me.

"Here. I have plenty."

Muttering "Arigato." I took small bites this time to savor the taste.

"Are you also mapping out this dungeon?" he asked.

"Hai." I replied as I nibbled on the breads edge.

"How far have you gotten?"

"Um… I finished with the east side." My tongue peeked out to lick where the cream had stuck to my lips. "I'm taking a breather before I start on the west."

"Sugei…" he breathed at me, looking all bright eyed. "Oh, my name is Kirito."

"Ah!" I shifted towards him and bowed my head. "My names Kagome."

An awkward silence settled down on our shoulders as we each sat in each other's company.

A cough came from his area and I turned my sapphire blue eyes towards his black pearls. "I usually don't team with anyone, but we'll map out the dungeon faster if we helped each other… that is, if you… uh… want to… team with… me?"

I stared at him wide eyes and a giggle left my mouth. His hesitance was so adorable! He must have heard me since he turned his back towards me and I couldn't help but wonder if he was pouting. The redness of his ears told me otherwise.

"I wouldn't mind." I replied as I opened up my menu and selected communication and towards the party tab. I gave him an award winning smile as he accepted.

Once I have rested enough within the now comfortable silence, I began to lift my artificial body to stand. He must have sensed that I was ready since he was already standing. I pouted when I realized he was a few inches taller than me.

"Ready?" he asked as we stood side by side at the Safe Area exit.

"Un!"

* * *

AU: Reviews makes me want to update! *Twinkle*


End file.
